Devil After Dark
by ZotzServant99
Summary: Join Kei, a vampire-like ferret from hell, as he, along with his best friend Sho the Akita, as they meet and take on a wide cast of characters, including a sinister figure from Kei's past who's out for blood.
1. Prelude to Horror

**Hey guys! Sorry about the temporary haitus that AWOL has taken. I'll try to get the next chapter up ASAP. I just needed a rest from it because, frankly, I'm running low on fuel and need to replenish myself ^^**

**Anyway, this is my next fanfic, Devil After Dark, or more commonly known as D.A.D ^^ It, like AWOL, is classified as an HTF fanfiction, but, unlike AWOL, only a few of the actual HTF characters will make an appearance, mostly as cameos, food, and just all around pointless, yet oh so amusing, blood and gore ^^**

**This story originally aired on my Deviantart account (which I frequent, I may add). All of the chapters will first make their appearance on dA, then they'll be posted here.**

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A massive clap of thunder shook the area as lightning flashed through the sky, lighting up a sea of boiling clouds. Hazardously, a figure flew, on a pair of dark feathered wings, through the sky, his head twisting this way and that as he tried to catch sight of the one pursuing him.

Suddenly, from his right, came a dark shape. A shudder of pain passed through him as the shape crashed into him, sending him spiraling. The shape clung to him, shoving the blade of a katana deep into his stomach.

With a snarl, he lashed out, feeling his claws slash through the flesh of the face of the shape. An enraged snarl greeted his actions and he felt the katana get twisted around, sending a fiery jolt through him. He yelled out in pain, gasping as the blade was yanked forcefully out of his stomach. A voice cut through the air, crashing harshly against his ears.

"Time to d-!" The voice was suddenly drowned out as thunder clapped nearby and a bolt of lightning streaked out of a cloud, illuminating the two figures, one being blue green and the other a dark midnight blue.

The bolt streaked at the darker colored figure, striking the katana blade with a crash. The fur of the darker creature stood on end as his eyes went wide. The teal creature flapped away quickly, but soon realized he was loosing altitude quickly. Finally, after his long, strenuous flight, his energy had finally slipped away as the wound on his stomach refused to heal itself.

Before he lost consciousness, he felt himself pitch downward sharply and freefall, darkness clouding his vision as he blacked out.

The second figure recovered flight and sight quickly. He cast his eyes about, looking for his target, but soon realized, as lightning flashed by him, that it was too dangerous to continue searching and, with a flick of a wing, turned and quickly vanished.

**

* * *

**

The sun rose slowly into the sky, casting it's pale rays over a large city. Sho looked to the east and shielded his grayish blue eyes against the light, flinching slightly. His stomach growled, reminding him that he hadn't eaten anything since the morning before.

The Akita rubbed his stomach ruefully. For all seven years of his short life, Sho could always remember being hungry...at least for as far as he could remember. He sighed and looked around, hoping to find something, anything, to eat. Seeing nothing, he continued, his curled tail straight and almost dragging the ground.

"Z and Razor'll be worried 'bout me if I don't get back soon..." He muttered to himself as he continued walking, his legs weary from his wanderings.

He walked past the front of a shop and looked at the window. His reflection stared back at him. His white fur, with it's grayish Tora-ge markings, was now dirty from crawling into spaces, either in search of something, or as a way of escape. His clothing, a tattered green t-shirt and ripped light blue shorts, were no better.

"Hey you!" Sho jerked his head up and saw a light blue badger standing in front of the door, his arms crossed. "Go on, get out of here, you're bad for business!" He said, an annoyed note in his voice, as he pointed in the direction Sho was originally headed.

Sho frowned and growled, his paws clenching angrily. "I wasn't even doing anything..." Sho muttered angrily, glaring at the badger

The badger sniffed airily and replied. "You'll scare away all my customers! That's all that riff-raff like you are good for."

Sho sank his fangs into his bottom lip, his ears almost pressed flat to his head. "I'm not riff-raff..." He replied quietly, a snarl nearly spicing his words.

"What else could you possibly be? Tattered clothing, no shoes, covered in dirt and grim, and wandering the streets when you should be sleeping. You have no parents too! You're just riff-raff through and through!" The badger growled, shaking a claw at Sho. "You'll never amount to anything!" Again he pointed away from the shop. "Now get the hell away from here!"

The Akita growled, but continued on his way, glaring all the while at the badger, who nodded and headed back in, slamming the door shut. Sho gritted his fangs and faced forward, storming angrily away with his arms crossed.

"Stupid badger..." He growled to himself as he started to pass an alleyway. "One day I'll..." He suddenly blinked and turned his head, sniffing the air. "Blood..." He whispered as he slowly turned, facing the alley, and stared hard.

Sticking out from the side of a large green trash container, was a dark furred tail. Sho stared at it, then cautiously walked forward, keeping his eyes on the tail. Soon, with each step, the whole creature came into view.

He was a blue green Varg ferret with teal paws, tail tip, and mask. He wore a black trench coat, with a navy blue inside, over top of a red shirt and black jeans, and dark brown boots. There was a tear on his shirt, around his stomach region and the fabric around it seemed to be of a darker red than the rest of the shirt. Suddenly, Sho's eyes locked on to a large gold watch, which hung around the ferret's neck on a sky blue lanyard.

Sho gulped and looked from the watch to the ferret's face, which appeared to be frozen in a closed-mouth grimace of pain. Slowly, the Akita extended a paw, reaching for the watch.

No sooner did he touch a claw to the watch, did the ferret come to. His eyes, a strange blue/green/yellow tricolor, snapped open and turned aggressively towards Sho while a hand wrapped around his wrist, squeezing in a vice-like grip.

Sho's eyes went wide as the ferret bared his fangs, two of which were unusually long, and snarled, but seemed to suddenly lose strength and, with a groan, flopped back limply against a garbage bag, his breathing hoarse and shallow. Sho backed up as the ferret's eyes landed on him, looking slightly under his own...at his neck, with a strange hunger flaring in them.

A sudden ray of sunlight flashed into the alley, casting it's light over the ferret's paw. He flinched, his mouth working strangely, letting out several hisses in pain, as his paw started smoking and blackening slowly. The ferret turned his eyes, glazing in pain, to the direction the ray was coming from. Within the next thirty minutes, the sun's light about be fully on him. He tried to lift himself up, but flopped back limply with a pain filled groan.

Sho licked his lips nervously and stepped forward, carefully approaching the ferret.

"H-hey, are you okay, mister?" He asked shakily.

The ferret turned his eyes back to Sho. A low hiss rose from his throat. "Leave me alone..."

Sho took a nervous breath and extended a hand. "Are you oka-?"

Angrily, the ferret lashed out, smacking Sho's hand away with the back of his own. "I said leave me alone!" He snarled nastily, but he groaned and flopped back limply again, exhausted from the outburst. He closed his eyes and bared his fangs in pain as his hand continued burning.

Sho looked around the alley, then back to the ferret, then around the alley again. Suddenly, he locked his eyes on a tarp that laid discarded in the way back. Quickly, he ran over to it, feeling the ferret's gaze burning into the back of his neck.

Clumsily, Sho snatched up the tarp and drug it over to the pained ferret, laying it over him. As soon as the hand of the ferret was out of the light, it stopped smoking, but kept a slightly blackened look.

"Okay..." Sho spoke to himself "all I need to do is get him back..." Again, he looked around the alley, casting about for something to help him get the strange ferret back to where he lived with his brother, Z, and their friend, Razor.

The Akita breathed out a sigh of relief as he found just what he was looking for. Next to a door, filled to the brim with trash, was a wheeled garbage can, just big enough for the ferret to fit in. Sho ran over to it, then hesitated, looking around cautiously. Then, he rushed at it and threw his body against it, knocking it on it's side and causing the garbage to spill out.

Sho grimaced as he crawled inside, clawing at the foul mess until the container was free of garbage, even though the scent still clung to it. As quick as he could, Sho drug the can over to the ferret. The Akita scratched his head in confusion.

"Now what...?" He asked himself as he looked between the covered ferret and the container. With a shrug of his thin shoulder, Sho approached the ferret and started tugging at him. Surprisingly, Sho found the Varg relatively light and easily to move.

Finally, after a few minutes of tugging, Sho succeeded in getting the ferret into the can. Sho looked in at the ferret, only to be met by his eyes staring agitatedly back at him. Sho gave a nervous smile and gripped the lid.

"Just until I get you to my brother, alright?" Before the ferret could even attempt to reply, Sho shut the lid and started wheeling the can out of the alley and back to where he stayed.

* * *

"No, you can't get it open with wire!" Razor, a dark green dog with orange eyes, said to Z, a white Akita with a black 'z' shaped mark on his face under his right eye.

Z looked up from his work, an annoyed look in his eyes. "Well what do you suggest I do?" Several minutes ago, Razor and himself has just returned from searching for food. For several days, they had only been able to gather a few things: an apple, a buck and a half, a half filled bottle of water, but today, their luck had finally changed.

Razor was ecstatic at their haul. Z had been able to grab a suitcase from a Varg while Razor distracted him. Of course, they had to get out of there the second they did, for the Varg had come running after them, screaming his head off.

Z turned and looked at his brother. "Hey Sho, come and-" He cut himself off when he saw Sho trying, once again, to feed the strange ferret a spoonful of oatmeal, which Z had been able to steal that morning.

The ferret kept this head turned, ignoring Sho as his eyes stared blankly at nothing in particular. Sho held the spoon close to his mouth encouragingly, but was blatantly ignored.

Z sighed and looked down just in time. Razor had come out of nowhere with a large rock in both hands, slamming it down on the suitcase locks, barely giving Z any time to pull his claws away.

"Oi! Be carefu-!" His shout was cut off by the shout of joy that Razor gave out.

"YES!!! Look at it all!" He yelled happily as he reached down and grabbed a handful of money and looked at it in wonder, his eyes flashing.

Z felt his mouth drop open at the sight of all the cash that was before him. He shook his head, dumbfounded.

"This is just...wow..." He looked up and smiled as he watched Razor toss a large handful into the air and dance around as the money fluttered to the ground around him.

"We could even get a house with this!" Razor yelped happily as his tail wagged in joy.

"Or you could put it back and save your life." Came a dangerous voice and the sound of a gun being cocked. Z and Razor slowly turned, staring in horror at the owner of the suitcase. He glared at them. "But it all back in, you filthy punks..."

Razor gulped, then reached down but, instead of cash, he grabbed a rock.

"Take this!" He yelled as he threw the rock at the Varg, striking him in the gut. The Varg doubled over with an 'oof'.

"Run Razor!" Z yelled as he stood up and bolted.

Sho watched in horror as the Varg recovered and aimed at Z, firing. Z gave a cry and toppled forward, skidding to a halt and laid still, groaning in pain. Sho's eyes widened as the gun was turned to him.

"You. Go and get the other one, or I'll kill you," He jerked his head at Z "him, and then I'll hunt the other one down and kill him too."

Sho gulped, frozen. The Varg glared at him.

"Well, get going!!!" He cocked his gun to show he meant business.

Sho ran, fear aiding to his flight, as he rushed after Razor.

The Varg glared after him, then stooped and started collecting his money, placing it back into the suitcase.

"Damned kids..." He muttered darkly as he concentrated on his work...completely oblivious to the fact that he had just become the hunted as a pair of tricolor eyes locked onto him.

Sho had only made it about 10 yards when a straggled cry came from behind him. The Akita skidded to a halt and whipped around, ears straining to pick up any sounds. The sound of dragging greeted his ears and, the next second, Z appeared, limping and dragging his leg, then collapsed against the side of a wall.

Sho ran over to him. "Z, are you okay?!" The Akita nodded, a painful grimace on his face. Sho crouched down beside him. "What happened?!"

Z nodded his head towards where he'd come from. "Your friend..." His face flinched in pain, then he continued, his voice lower. "He's a monster..."

Sho felt the fur on the back of his neck rise up, almost at the same time that he did, standing straight and staring. Slowly, he moved forward.

"No Sho!" Z yelled hoarsely as he made a grab for his brother, but Sho moved out of the way of his brother's hand, continuing on his way.

Eventually, after what seemed like an eternity of creeping, Sho was finally back in the area where the shooting had happened. He turned his head, seeing neither the Varg with the gun, or the ferret.

Sho perked his ears suddenly, having picked up a noise. It was strange, but it resembled the noise of feeding...of some sorts. Slowly, the Akita inched his way forward, looking around cautiously as his ears locked onto the source of the noise.

When he turned the corner, he was greeted by a sight that seemed to be straight out of a horror movie.

The ferret was poised over the Varg, one claw on the Varg's head and the other on the Varg's shoulder, while he had his fangs buried in the neck, sucking down blood with greedy abandonment. Sho's eyes went wide as he continued inching his way forward, accidentally kicking a rock in his path.

The ferret suddenly perked his ears and looked sharply over, blood smeared around his mouth, locking his eyes onto Sho.

Sho gulped and froze for a second, then started walking forward again. The ferret seemed to have a confused look in his eyes.

"You're...not afraid?" He asked softly.

Sho stopped moving and stared back at him. Slowly, he smiled and shook his head. This caused the confused look in his eyes to seemingly evaporate, replaced by genuine curiosity.

"What is you're name?" The ferret asked quietly.

"Sho" The Akita replied happily. "And you?"

The ferret stared at him. Then smiled, fangs bloody, yet friendly. "Just call me Kei..."

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**Kei, Sho, Z, Razor (c) ZotzServant99 (or just Zs)**


	2. 17 Years Later

**_Alright! Here's chapter 2 guys ^^_**

**_...hmm, I really don't have anything to say here. Thanks for the support and everything ^^ Oh, to see what Sho and Kei look like, just stop by my Deviantart page and check it out. The link can be found on my FF homepage ^^_**

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~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~17 Years Later~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Sho ran quickly along the rooftops of the city he grew up in, trying his best to conceal his presence to the one that hunted him. The Akita carefully controlled his breathing, making sure it didn't come out in ragged gasps, keeping air coming and out fluidly.

After the incident with the Varg 17 years ago, Kei had changed from the ferret he used to be, to a more cheerful, if not annoying, individual. But still, Sho looked to Kei as an older brother of sorts, especially since his luck had made a direct u-turn after meeting the odd ferret. Instead of leaving after he'd recovered, Kei had stuck around, going out and easily coming back with money and food.

Sho stopped and pressed his back against a wall, his eyes flicking around as he tried to pinpoint any movement that his pursuer made.

Suddenly, the Akita jerked his head to the side in a blur, seconds before a bullet drilled into the wall, right where his head had been. Kei suddenly appeared, seated on an oddly placed rock, smoking gun in paw. The ferret smiled, revealing his fangs, and laughed.

"Hahahahaha, you're getting faster, Sho. Congrats." Kei said with a large, cocky smile on his face. Sho knew him well enough to know the ferret had every right to be a smug. If he really wanted to, Kei could kill him instantly, but, as Sho also knew, Kei would never purposely kill him...but accidental...now that was another matter all together.

Sho's ears, which seemed to be always laid back, flattened themselves even closer to his head, remember all the times where he'd 'accidentally' been put through a wood chipper. With an upwards jerk of his hand, the Akita flipped the ferret off.

"You know what Kei?! Shove it!" Sho growled angrily, much to Kei's amusement. The ferret threw his head back and let out a laugh.

"Hahahahahaha!! No thanks, Sho, both you and I know I'm not like that!" Kei replied as he holstered his gun and stood. The ferret stretched his arms above his head and yawned.

"You need to stop faking." Sho said, addressing his friend's yawn.

Kei blinked owlishly at the Akita. "And why do ya say I'm lying?"

"Kei, it's midnight. You and I both know you don't get tired at night." And it was true. The ferret was a creature of the night. He had to be, considering the fact that sunlight was his bane.

"Hey, I can yawn without being tired, you know! Yawning doesn't signify the lack of sleep."

"Alright, Kei, tell me. What is 'yawning' to you?"

Kei blinked, then walked off. "I don't know."

Sho sighed and followed his friend, halting only when Kei leapt up onto the ledge of a building, then leapt to another one. Sho leaned over the edge, looking at the ground, which was at least 10 stories below. The Akita shook his head, then leapt onto the ledge, gathered himself, muscles tense, and threw himself forward in a leap.

Inches from the edge, Sho tensed, readying himself for a landing. Suddenly, a fist, a teal furred fist, appeared in front of his face. Sho's eyes went wide seconds before his face made contact.

The blow halted the Akita's forward progress, turning it, instead, into a straight downward plunge.

"KEEEEEEEEIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIII!!!!!!!!!!!!!" Sho yelled angrily as he plummeted to the ground, flailing his arms around, attempting to grab onto something, anything, to cease his fall. He flipped, his head facing downward, allowing him to behold what awaited him: the hard concrete of the alleyway below.

Suddenly, Sho's whole body jerked as something wrapped around his ankle, halting his fall. The Akita swung his body around, attempting to look up.

"Thought you would've seen that coming." Kei's voice came from above him. Sho tilted his head, bringing the ferret into view. He was seated on a window sill, lounging and keeping a firm hold on the Akita's ankle. Sho frowned angrily.

"Kei, this is you we're, in a sense, talking about! Who knows what the hell you'd do!" Sho shouted angrily upwards. Kei bared his fangs in a smile.

"Yeah, I guess you're-"

"PERVERT!!!!"

Kei blinked as the word blared against his ears, causing them to sting.

"Wha-?!"

The ferret turned his head, coming virtually face to face with a purple female Varg bear, wearing nothing but a towel, which was wrapped around her. Kei's eyes widened as she raised a long handled brush, brandishing it like a sword. She screamed and struck out, knocking the ferret upside the head.

"HEY!!!! Whoa! Ow! Stop it, lady!!" Kei yelled angrily as he raised his free arm to protected himself from the onslaught. "Ow ow ow ow! What're ya doin' takin' a bath at midnight anyway!?!?!?!?"

Sho bit back a laugh as he watched his friend getting walloped by the aggressive female. The bear held the brush up, bringing it down, painfully hard, right between Kei's legs. The ferret's eyes flew even wider than they previously were as a screech tore from his throat. At that, Sho started laughing, having been unable to contain it anymore. Of course, his laughter was short lived.

Forgetting that he was the only thing keeping Sho from splattering all over the ground, Kei let go of his friend and grabbed himself with his hand, keeping the other arm raised against the blows. Sho felt Kei let go and his fall continued.

"DAAAAAAMMIIIIIIIT KEEEEEIIII!!!!" Sho howled as he plummeted, striking the concrete with a sickening crunch.

Kei, after suffering a few more whacks, threw himself off the edge and away from his aggressor. Silently, he landed on all fours on the concrete below.

"Ow..." The ferret groaned as he slowly straightened his body, pain briefly flaring before vanishing altogether. Kei stretched, reaching his arms above his head and flexing his claws with a yawn.

"Well, that could've been worse, Sho." He said with a grin, turning to face Sho. He blinked as he saw his friend, or what remained of him, smashed to the ground.

"...I take back that last statement." Kei spoke absently to Sho's corpse as he crouched down, laying a hand on the Akita's smashed head. Slowly, the ferret's hand started glowing a dark green. The glow spread out, enveloping Sho's body in a flash of green light.

Kei waited a few moments, watching as the bits and pieces of Sho, that had splattered on the walls after he'd struck the ground, vanished. After a minute, Kei removed his hand, causing the glow to slowly fade away, leaving a fully intact Akita.

Sho groaned, grimacing, then sat up, rubbing his head ruefully. The Akita blinked a few more times, then turned his head, glaring at Kei.

"I'd kill you, but I know you're, literally, going to hell." Sho said angrily as he kept rubbing his head. Kei sighed, shaking his head.

"Not me altogether..." The ferret muttered, almost rebelliously.

"But your mind, on the other hand-"

"I know! I know! My mind is-" Suddenly, Kei's eyes rolled, revealing the whites, and the ferret collapsed backwards, spread eagle. Sho sat for a few moments, looking around, incase anyone had seen, then stood. Like Kei did before him, Sho stretched, feeling a dull ache that seemed to pulse through his body.

"Damn, I wish you'd get more experienced at Revival." Sho mumbled "Maybe then I could actually feel great when I come back." The Akita stooped down, grabbed Kei, and slung the ferret over his shoulders. He looked around again, then walked off, thinking back to when he had first met Kei.

'He didn't weight that much then either.' Sho thought absently as he carried his friend through the dark streets. 'Well, best not stay in the past. All I have to worry about is getting him back before his mind returns...' One of Sho's ears flickered as the Akita remember the last time Kei's mind returned from it's temporary stay in a hellpit.

Sho chuckled slightly, remembering the time when he learned of Kei's origins. His mind went back to that conversation.

_"So, where you from Kei?" Sho asked, lounging against a wall, studying the ceiling._

_"Eh? Where I'm from?" The ferret blinked, then bared his fangs in a grin. "You wouldn't believe me even if I told you!"_

_"Huh, try me. Right now, I'd believe anything." Sho replied with a smug look on his face._

_Kei shook his head, laughing lightly. "Fine. I'm from Sheol, or, as you Upperworld's call it, Hell." He said simply, with a big grin on his face, before he turned and walked off, leaving the Akita dumbfounded._

Sho was suddenly knocked out of his thoughts as he collided, painfully, with a streetlight. He stumbled backwards, rubbing his nose with a hand and mumbling something along the lines of "damned streetlight", before continuing.

* * *

The neon lights of a bar flicked slightly, occasionally shutting off, lighting up a few seconds later. One minute, it said Devil After Dark, the next Evil After Ark. A lone streetlight lit up the front street, providing light in the normally dark scene.

Inside, Razor mumbled something, occasionally twitching or flicking an ear, as he laid across the top of a small round table, deep in sleep. Ever since the arrival of Kei, his luck, along with that of his friends, Sho and Z's, had been skyrocketing. And now, thanks to this, his dreams were filled with visions of living life high on the hog. Razor grinned idiotically as he mumbled in his sleep.

"Why yes, that's a real diamond, lady..." Z perked an ear from where he stood behind the bar, pouring out a shot of some sort of alcoholic beverage for a Varg. The Akita past the Varg his drink and leaned against the bar, watching Razor as he mumbled something else to a girl in his dreams.

"What's he mumbling about now?" Z muttered to himself. "It better not be that penguin dream again..." Almost on cue, Razor's face contorted into a look of horror. He sat bolt upright suddenly, yelling.

"NO!! Get back, you bird of hell! Back back BACK!!!!" Razor yelled in horror and he flailed his arms around, clawing at the air. Z rolled his eyes and, balling up a rag, hurtled it at the Varg.

"Wake your ass up, Razor!!" Z yelled as the rag struck Razor dead center on his face.

"Huh?! What?!" The green dog looked around quickly, finally locking his eyes onto Z. "I had that dream where that woman turned into a demon penguin again!!!" He yelled frantically as he waved his arms in the air, causing Z to sigh and limp out from behind the bar. The bullet wound years ago had never fully healed, causing the Akita to have a perpetual limp.

"Razor, go upstairs, get in bed, go to sleep. It would be better for you, me, and every single person in this bar." Z said, a tired look on his face. Razor frowned angrily.

"Sure, whatever you say, Happy Pizza." Razor said with a smug look on his face. Z's face twitched angrily.

"It's not my fault that's the name of the place! We had to-" The Akita growled angrily and lowered his voice to a whisper. "We had to have a deceptive name to lull everyone into a false sense of security."

Razor frowned. "But 'Happy Pizza'? Couldn't you come up with something, I don't know, better than that?" Z massaged his temples with a sigh.

"It's not that simple, Razor." He replied with a bored air about him. He and his friend had gone over this before, several times in fact, and it was getting rather old. "You see-"

Before he could get any further, the front door swung open, letting in a draft. Z blinked, then turned to face the doorway. Sho walked through, still carrying Kei, and kicked the door shut.

"Hey, Sho." Z spoke to his brother, then grinned. "And what happened to Kei? Heh-heh, well, more like what happened to you."

Sho walked over to a door to the right of the bar. He fished around in his hoodie's pocket for a second, then pulled out a black key, carefully inserting it into the keyhole.

"I'll tell ya later." Sho replied as he turned the key. The Akita had just pulled the key out and pocketed it, when Kei started to groan. Sho and Z's eyes flew wide.

"Just open it and throw him in!" Z shouted frantically. Sho took his brother's advice and, with one yank, threw the door open. With a heave, the Akita sent the ferret tumbling and thudding down a long fly of spiral, black stairs. In a hurry, Sho slammed the door shut and locked it.

"Hit the dirt!" He cried out as he threw himself flat and grabbed his ears, the thudding of a body telling him his brother had followed suite. The Varg at the bar blinked in confusion.

"I say, what's all this abou-?" Before he was able to finish, a high pitched shriek could be heard. The glasses, mugs, and bottles on the shelves vibrated and the Varg grabbed his ears in pain.

"What the deuce is that bloody racket!?" He yowled loudly, his words somehow reaching Sho.

"That, my eloquent Varg, is the owner of this establishment." Sho shouted loudly. "He just got back from his vacation!"

"Vacation, you say?! Wherever from?!"

Sho had to chuckle as he answered. "From the pits of hell!"

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**_Kei, Sho, Z, Razor (c) ZotzServant99_**


	3. Déjà vu

**Whew...finally got this one out. I don't know when the next AWOL will be out, but I'm working on it.**

**So, enjoy and review ^^**

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"Ow!!!"

Sho flailed around briefly in his bed, messing up the blanket as the cry ripped the silence to shreds.

"Who?! What?!" The Akita shouted as he groped for the light, found it, and flicked it on. The lamp flashed on, briefly blinding the Tora-ge before he was finally able to figure out what was going on.

Kei, dressed in only his red shirt and black boxers, stood at the foot of his bed, jumping up and down while holding his bare foot. His eyes were squeezed together in pain and he had something clenched in one hand.

"Kei! What are you doing in my room!?" Sho yelled angrily at the ferret as he sat up in his bed.

Instantly, Kei stopped jumping and put his foot down, quickly putting a hand behind his back.

"Er, no reason." The ferret answered while looking back and forth. Sho threw the blanket off of himself, grabbed his gun, and stormed over to Kei.

"Kei, what don't you understand about 'Do not come into my room'!!!?" The Akita barked angrily as he placed the muzzle of the gun to Kei's forehead.

The ferret smiled nervously. "I understand you don't like others comin' in and all, but you're forgetting what day it is."

Sho perked an eyebrow and cocked the gun. "Would you mind enlightening me?"

"I can't believe you forgot your own day!" Z's voice came from the left. Before Sho was able to respond, his brother came out of (seemingly) nowhere and put a hat on his head. Deftly, he slipped a cord under Sho's chin and let it go, the rubbery material making a distinctive 'snap' sound as it made contact.

"Ow! What was that-?!" He stopped, his eyes growing wide, as he looked into the mirror. Perked on top of his head, was a bright pink birthday hat with the words "Birthday Girl", written in a curly font, covering the cone-like object. The Akita's mouth dropped open in utter horror.

"I can see you're speechless." Z said with a smile as he crossed his arms in front of him.

Sho continued staring, but, ever so slightly, a red cloud seemed to fill his eyes. Kei was the first to notice this.

"Er, if it's any constellation, pink matches you." The ferret said with a slightly nervous grin. At that, Sho snapped.

He turned to the two, foaming quickly building up on the corners of his mouth as a snarl uncurled from his throat.

"DAMN YOU TWO!!!!" He barked madly as he rushed at them, fangs bared, ready to tear, and gun cocked.

"Whoa!!!" Z yelled as he turned and limped quickly out the door, almost tripping as he struggled to flee down the stairs. Sho walked quickly after him, rising his gun to aim at his brother.

"Stop Sho!" Kei yelled as he grabbed Sho's extended arm, forcing it upwards. The Akita fired, sending a bullet through the ceiling. Sho snarled and twisted around, sinking his fangs deep into Kei shoulder. Suddenly, Kei's hand wrapped around his throat, but the teal fur of his friend had turned into black and the blue green to dark blue. The Akita's eyes went wide as Kei was replaced by a different ferret, his eyes radiating murderous intent as he lifted a katana, pointing it directly at the Akita's face. Sho bit deeper, feeling the 'kill or be killed' feeling welling up inside him as the katana stabbed forward.

Feathers exploded suddenly, causing the Akita to choke and cough. With a groan, he opened his eyes, to find himself biting deep into his pillow, which looked like it had exploded, sending feathers everywhere.

"Bleh..." Sho pulled his fangs out of the material, spitting out a few soggy feathers in the process. "What a dream..." The Akita muttered as he rubbed an eye and reached for the light. After feeling around for a second, he found the lamp switch and, with a tug, clicked the light on.

"AAAHHHH!!!!" Sho yelled as he nearly leapt out of his skin. Perched at the foot of his bed, watching him, was Kei. The ferret lifted a teal hand and waved.

"Hiya Sho!" Kei said with a slightly idiotic grin on his face.

"What do you want, Kei?" Sho asked with a sigh and a frown.

"Well, it's your birthday today and, since neither Razor nor Z can seem to remember it, I thought I'd get you something...well, _make_ you something ." Kei said, keeping his right hand behind his back.

_'Oh God...'_ Sho thought. '_Déjà vu...'_

"Well, what is it?"

"As if I'd just tell you." Kei said with a frown. "Sheesh..." With a motion, the ferret took his hand from behind his back, showing Sho what he had. Sho's eyes widened as he clasped eyes on the long bladed katana that his friend held out.

Slowly, Sho reached out and wrapped a hand around the sheathed blade. Kei let go, allowing the Akita to pull the blade towards himself. Sho's eyes roved up and down it, from its white and blue handle to the plain guard, then finally to the white sheath.

Keeping his hand on the handle, the Akita wrapped his other around the sheath, slowly sliding the silver blade out. When it was about halfway revealed, Sho whipped it out with a 'shing' and a flash of silver. Using the light of his lamp, the Akita inspected the blade, which was single edged, like a typical katana, but, unlike the usual, it sported a slightly serrated edge and was a few inches longer than a normal katana.

"Wow, Kei, you've outdone yourself this time." Sho spoke as he continued inspecting the, hopefully, flawless blade.

"It was nothing." Kei said as he interlocked his fingers behind his head, leaning back against the wall. Truth be told, it was harder to make than a normal katana, but that was when you take into account the power that it held.

Sho seemed to sense that it wasn't normal, but this was only because it's creator was as far from normal as you can get.

"Kei, what else can it do?" Sho asked simply, as it commenting on the weather.

Kei blinked. "And what makes you say it does anything else?"

Sho eyed him critically. "Because I know you." He said simply, yet again.

Kei kept a straight face, then cracked a smile. "You know me too well."

"So what does it do?" Sho asked, the side of his face twitching slightly. He remembered, clearly, what happened the last time. It had, of course, resulted in another death for the Akita.

"Well...in the morning, it's power increases greatly, just like how it's twin's power increases during the night." Kei explained. "But there's a catch."

Sho perked an eyebrow. "And that would be?"

Kei unlocked his fingers and scratched the back of his head with a hand, while placing the other in his pocket. "For some reason, I could only get the power to increase with the phases of the moon. So, only a few days a month will the power work."

"And, let me guess, that's when the moon is either full, new, quarter, or half, and only for that one exact day?"

Kei nodded. "Yeah, that's it."

"Kei...the swords almost sound like Skoll and Hati, in a sense." Sho said as he stared at an engraved image he just noticed. It was the depiction of a wolf twisted around a sun, it's fangs sunk into the orb.

"Well, yeah, that's where I got the inspiration from. Oh, just to let you know, that's what your sword's called: Skoll." Kei said with a smile.

"Hmm...what about Hati? Who has that?" Sho questioned.

"I do, but it's in my room." Kei said, jerking his thumb at the floor, signaling where his room was.

"...does anything happen when they're combined?" Sho asked, rubbing a thumb on the wolf design.

"Er, they're supposed to do...something, but they seem to, uh, well, they seem to explode whenever I put them together."

Sho rolled his eyes and shook his head. "So, this sword I'm holding...it could blow up?"

"No! Skoll's safe. It's Hati that has the explosion problem. I'm still trying to work it out."

"...say, Kei? Have you ever seen a dark blue ferret with black accents before?" Sho didn't even know why he asked, but the dream was still bothering him.

At this, Kei's eyes seemed to take an almost guarded look to them. "Why do you ask?" The ferret replied, his voice quiet.

Sho recognized the signs, all of them signaling danger. "...Never mind. Forget I said anything." Sho said with a shake of his head.

"Alright then!" The ferret replied brightly, completely shrugging off his previous dangerous air.

Sho smiled slightly, giving a quiet laugh. "You've always been weird Ke-"

There was a sudden flash of lightning, followed by a crack of thunder, and the lamp flickered, then went out.

For a moment, there was silence. Then-

"OH MY GOD!!!" Kei yelled as he ran towards the door, crashing into various items.

"What!?" Sho asked as the lightning and thunder came again.

"I forgot to save Guitar Here! All my songs and scores will be gone!! DAMMIT!!!!" The ferret yelled as he ran out of the room.

"..."

============================Elsewhere============================

The rain poured down heavily, causing the lines of reality to blur and warp, twisting shapes into things that they weren't. A group of Varg stood under the overhang of a bridge, gathered around a fire barrel for warmth.

One of them, a light green badger, looked up at the sound of footsteps. He narrowed his eyes, staring out into the rain as a figure started to take shape, black and blurry but becoming defined as the seconds past.

"Hey." The badger said as he nudged a dark violet cat. "Someone's comin'." He stated with a jerk of his head at the figure.

The cat looked up from the fire and over, squinting his eyes. "Yeah, you're right."

Within seconds, the figure emerged from the rain, stepping out of it and into the overhang, stopping just short of the firelight. Even in the dark, there was a flash of gold from the area of the figure's chest.

The badger sneered. "Well, what do we have here? You new here?"

His words were greeted by silence.

The badger looked around at the group, who spread out, blocking the area of the tunnel.

"If you want through, you've got to pay. This is our territory, you see, and you-"

"Move or die." The figure said simply.

"You're in no position to talk shit!" The badger snarled, angered by being interrupted. "Now either you pay or get knocked the hell out!"

In the blink of an eye, the figure vanished. The badger blinked in confusion, whether it was at the disappearance of the figure, or the fact that he was now staring up at his decapitated body, he'd never know.

The other Varg stared in horror as their leader's body collapsed, blood pouring from his severed neck.

"You can talk shit, but you can't back it up. Go to hell, bastards." The voice came from behind them, quickly followed by a click.

In several miniature showers of blood, their bodies collapses, limbs and heads severed. The wind picked up briefly, causing the fire to rise momentarily, illuminating a pair of tricolor eyes and the dark blue fur of the figure, before he turned and walked off, turning his back to his victims and slowly walked off.


	4. Side o' Fried Ferret

**Alright! The title for this is rather weird, but it was just something that I pulled out of the mess that is my mind on short notice. If you guys are wondering what words like Varg and Lera are, just check out the bottom part of my FF page for definitions.**

**Enjoy!**

* * *

Sho fished angrily in a pocket, searching for the key to his bar.

"Where the hell is it?!" The Akita growled to himself as he turned through change, looking for the elusive object. In his other arm, he carried a large paper bag, filled to the brim with various objects that Kei had sent him out for.

"What does he think I am?" Sho muttered as he (finally) found the key and inserted it into the lock. "Why doesn't he just go get this stuff himself?" Of course, his question was answered by the heat of the sun as it beat down on him, but he chose to ignore that fact.

With a click, the door was unlocked. Sho pocketed the key and wrapped a hand around the door, then stood still, his ears twitching faintly. With a slight turn of his head, he looked behind him.

Standing still on the other side of the street just behind him, was a Varg. Judging by the fur on his white tipped tail, he was a grey fox, dressed in a bluish grey hoodie, with the hood pulled over his head. His only accessory was a black backpack, the straps of which were all that was visible to Sho owing to the position the fox was standing in. Even though his eyes were shadowed, the Akita could feel them watching him.

Turning a bit more, the Akita addressed the fox.

"Can I help you?"

His words were greeted with silence. Sho, in turn, went silent, watching the fox cautiously. With a casual flick of his tail, the fox turned, his black paws padding silently as he walked off.

"Weird..." Sho muttered as he watched the fox go. When he vanished, the Akita turned the knob and walked in, closing the door carefully behind him. Z looked up from the bar, blinking drowsily at his brother.

"Hey, Sho."

"Mmm-hmm." Sho replied with a nod as he walked to the bar. "Hey, Z, have you noticed anyone that's...I don't know, strange, lately?"

Z rubbed his chin. "Hmm...you mean anyone other than Kei?" Z asked with a chuckle.

Sho sighed in agitation. "I meant anyone that's new around here."

"Well, when you put it that way, yeah. There was this Varg, I think he was a grey fox. Anyway, he was standing out front for a while. He was just...standing and staring. I sent Razor out to see if he wanted anything, but he just stayed quiet."

"Huh, weir-"

The door that led to Kei's room flew open. "SHO!"

The Akita jumped at the sudden shout. "What?!"

"..."

Sho frowned and turned to Kei, getting ready to repeat himself, when he paused. The ferret was standing still, his ears perked and his eyes fixed on the front of the bar.

"Kei?" Sho asked, slightly worried by Kei's sudden silence. Kei blinked and shook his head, turning to face the Akita.

"What? Oh, you got the stuff. Thanks." He said rather absentmindedly as he took the bag and turned, walking back to the stairs and closing the door with a loud slam. Sho and Z stared at the door, then turned to look at each other.

"What's up with him?" Z asked, perking his ears up. Sho frowned at his brother and snorted, keeping his ears flat.

"You'd think I'd know? He doesn't tell me much...sorta..."

"Hmm." Was all Z said as he walked out from behind the bar and past Sho, giving his brother a pat on the shoulder. "You look like hell. Go and get some sleep, you know, in case I have a job for you tonight."

Sho glared angrily at his brother. "And why should I listen to you?" His words were rewarded with a harder pat.

"Because I'm you're older brother and what I say-"

**"DOESN'T MEAN SHIT!"** Sho yelled, causing Z to jump slightly.

"Come on, Sho I was just-"

"Yeah, I know, and so was I."

"Gimme a break, Sho, you're someone that never jokes." Z said with a slight frown, causing Sho to roll his eyes.

"Whatever, Z. Just go away." The white Tora-ge Akita barked at his brother has he shoved the older Akita towards the door, causing Z to limp faster.

"Alright alright alright! I'm going, I'm going, I'm-wait, why am I going?! I live here too!" Z said, digging the claws of his good paw into the floor.

Sho kept shoving, knowing his brother couldn't keep this up for too long. "Because you have a business to run!" He grunted and, with a final shove, sent his brother out the door, almost resulting in a face to the ground. Z balanced himself before he fell and was ready to tell Sho off, when the door slammed shut and a few (dozens) of locks could be heard clicking into place.

Grinning, Z shook his head and turned, limping off to his own business. "Maybe there'll be a job for him tonight, maybe not. Either way, the two of them are getting too lazy just sitting around there." Unknown to him, the fox from earlier watched from the shadows of an alleyway, with another Varg standing next to him.

"You think it'll work?" The fox asked turning to the other.

The other gave a scornful snort. "Are you questioning me?"

"No! Uh..." The fox said quickly, scratching the back of his head. "I just needed a bit of reassurance."

"And you looked to me for that? You really are an idiot." The other said as, judging by the voice, she turned and walked off. "Now just be patient, bastard, and wait for everything to fall into place." She said angrily as she vanished, leaving the fox alone.

The fox rolled his eyes. "Do you even know what the hell you're doing?" He muttered under his breath, careful to keep his voice low as, he too, turned and vanished.

* * *

Kei sat on the floor, his back against the wall, concentrating on the katana in his hands. It, like it's twin, Skoll, had a long silver blade, but this one had a description of a wolf biting the moon on it. That, and the fact that it had a black and red bound handle, were really the only things that told the difference between the two blades.

After a few more minutes of adjusting something, the ferret stood up and walked over to a shelf, which had Skoll resting on it. Without hesitation, Kei picked up the other sword and held the two of them up, glancing between them.

"Please" He prayed "please, please, **PLEASE**! Let it work this time!" He yelled the final part as he flipped the blades around so that the butts of the handles were pointed at each other. Quickly, he pressed the two ends to each other and gave them a twist. There was a click as the blades locked together, creating something that looked similar to a double-blades spear...if only slightly.

"Don't blow up in my face." Kei said as he pumped his energy into them. Skoll's blade momentarily flashed white, then flared as white-hot flames, tinged light blue here and there, crept out along the blade. The flames reached the tip, completely covering the blade as it emitted a powerful wave of heat. Kei smiled to himself, Skoll was working perfectly. Hati, on the other hand...

The blade, like it's counterpart, flashed, this time it was black in color. Suddenly, it started to grow a violent red color. Kei's eyes went wide, as he desperately tried to take the swords apart, but wasn't quick enough.

With a loud clap, Hati self-destructed, sending the ferret flying, slamming painfully into the door. He groaned and started forward, when Hati flew at him, along with Skoll, and impaled him through the heart, sending him backwards. The katana blade buried itself deep into the door, pinning him. Kei spurted up a bit of blood, then closed his eyes, waiting for the fiery stab of Skoll...

...that never came. Instead, he felt its heat on his face. Slowly, he cracked an eye, then opened them fully. Somehow (to this day, Kei has yet to find out how the hell this happened) Skoll's handle was stuck deep into the wall, its point pointed straight at his face and the blade still flaming brightly.

The ferret let out a sigh of relief, right when Sho put a hand on the door knob. "Kei? What's this sword doing stuck through the door?!" Kei's opened his mouth, getting ready to yell for him not to come in, when the Akita came in anyway, swinging the door open quickly.

Skoll's flames started burning at his face savagely, temporarily taking his breath away as the fire scorched away his fur. The point impaled itself through his right eye as the door kept opening, sliding Kei's head along the blade until the tip exited through the back and stabbed into the door, still burning fiercely.

Sho frowned as the door stopped opening. He shoved at it, attempting to open it further, then grabbed his ears in pain as a shriek ripped through the room. "What the fu-!?" Sho moved, still holding his ears, and looked behind the door. His eyes went wide as he stared at Kei as the ferret thrashed, shrieked, and kicked madly, trying to free himself from the fiery hell that he was in.

The Akita shook himself out of the shock he was in and grabbed the door, wrenching it open and yanking Kei, plus Skoll, which was still in his head, away from the wall. Sho reached for Skoll, attempting to remove it, when flames flared out of the end of the handle, scorching the dog's hand. With a bark, Sho moved his hand and licked furiously at it, trying to ease the burning sensation that flared through it.

"SHO!!!!" Kei hollered. "GET IT OUT!! GRAB IT GRAB IT **GRAB IT**!!!!"

"HOW THE FUCK DO I GRAB IT IF THE HANDLE'S ON FIRE!??!!?"

"THE HANDLE'S NOT ON FIRE! IT'S FLAME RETARDANT!!! THE FLAMES ARE COMING FROM THE RUPTURED END!!"

Sho grit his fangs as he moved forward and, being careful to avoid the wildly flaming end, wrapped his hand around the handle. With a tug, he yanked the blade out, causing Kei to grunt a bit, before breathing a sigh of relief.

"Damn. I don't care if that can't kill me, it still hurts!" He glared at Sho out of his remaining eye, snarling. "**AND IT'S ALL YOUR FAULT**!!!" He lunged, trying to get at Sho, but was held back by Hati, which was still impaling his heart.

Sho pointed Skoll at Kei, the blade still flaming. "You listen to me, Kei. It's **YOUR** fault that you created an exploding sword, resulting in your impalement!"

Kei barred his fangs and growled. "I didn't create an exploding sword! It just won't work right!"

"Alright, then you created a piece of crap that doesn't work worth a damn."

"NO!" The ferret yelled angrily as he grabbed Hati's handle and yanked the blade out of him. He clapped a hand to his mouth, coughing out a lot of blood.

"Damn..." He muttered as he pulled his hand back, looking at the blood that thoroughly saturated the teal fur, tingeing it red. "You know, Sho, I'd kill you right now, but I'm in no shape to do so." Kei looked up at the Akita, dropping his hand back to his side. "But what do you want?"

"I want to know what's up with you." Sho answered, looking between Kei and Skoll's flaming blade. Kei sighed and sat down on his bed, setting Hati down.

"Just 'will' it off, Sho. It's your sword."

Sho gave a nod and concentrated, willing the sword to stop flaming. Nothing. "Kei, nothing's happening." The ferret rolled his eyes and, with a grunt, stood up and walked over.

"I guess you can't do it 'cause it's new." He carefully took the sword from Sho. "When willing it doesn't work, do this." Kei wrapped his hand around the guard and twisted it counter-clockwise. Almost instantly, the flames on the blade shut off, but the handle kept flaming.

"What about that?" Sho asked, nodding to the end. Kei flipped it over and inspected it, careful to keep the shearing hot flames away from his burned face.

"Hmm...as I said before, the end ruptured, allowing the flames to escape from the handle."

"Can you fix it?" Sho asked, looking at it.

"Sho, who am I?"

Sho groaned. He knew the answer to this. "You're Kei-"

"Yeah, so shut the hell up." Kei said, limping over to a desk and setting Skoll up so the handle was pointing straight up. The ferret was about to start working, when he turned and frowned at Sho. "Go on, get out of here."

The Akita rolled his eyes and turned to go out, then he paused. "Still, why were you acting strange earlier?"

Kei stayed silent. Sho sighed, opened the door and stepping across the threshold, not expecting an answer, when it came.

"Have you ever heard of the Circles?"

* * *

**CLIFFHANGER!!!**

**Kei, Sho, Z (c) ZotzServant99 (me v.v)**


	5. Circular Stray

**Sorry guys! This chapter's been out on Deviantart for about a month now, but I completely forgot about FF o.o' Well, here's chapter 5. One of my main, and one of the most psychotic, OCs makes an appearance in this one at the endish area ^^**

* * *

"The Circles?" Sho asked, turning to look at Kei. The Akita had never heard of it. "What's that?" Kei turned his back on Skoll, which still belched out flames, a serious look on his face. His face was healing quickly, with the fur already grown back in some places. His chest wound, visible through the tear in his shirt, was still open and drizzling blood, and his eye was shut and had blood dripping from beneath it.

"Well, the Circles is a hell plain." The ferret stated, scratching at one of his cropped ears. "It's a place where those of this world go when they die an unnatural death."

Sho flicked an ear slightly. "What do you mean exactly when you say 'unnatural death'?"

"You know, if you get murdered or if you die in an accident. As long as it's not a death by disease or old age, then it's unnatural." Kei said, scratching at his face, irritated by the re-growth of fur.

The Akita pondered this. "But...what does that have to do with anything?"

"Well, there's creatures in this world called Circle beings. They were either born in the Circles, or they made it through it after they died and came back to life with a Circle ability." The ferret shrugged suddenly. "But I really don't know about any of them...that much. I know that there's the Sight, Flight, Fire, Healing...and several more, but I'm not really sure what the real names of them are, except for the Sight."

"...are you say that where was one of them around here?" Sho asked, thinking about the fox. Again, Kei shrugged.

"Maybe, maybe not. Ya never really know. But I know I sensed someone." He frowned suddenly. "Or two...I'm not sure...but whatever, get the hell out so I can work."

"As you wish, bastard." Sho said, walking out and shutting the door with a snort. The information he'd just received made him feel...uneasy at best. "Damn, life just loves getting hard, doesn't it?" The question was addressed to no one in particular as he made his way up the stairs.

* * *

"Think they're asleep yet?" Sho asked Kei. Both of them were standing outside a warehouse, ears perked to listen for any noise from the inside. So far, there'd been only a few muttered voices, but they had ceased to exist.

"Well, if you're cripple of a brother got the amount right, then yeah, they should be." Kei moved his head, barely avoiding being pistol-whipped. "Come on, Sho! I was just kidding about the crippled part!"

The Akita snorted angrily. "He's only messed up the amount of the drug once."

"Yeah, and that resulted in us getting fired on."

"You didn't care!" Sho growled angrily. "You just sat out for the entire fight and let me do the work!"

Kei simply shook his head, this argument was going nowhere...like last time. You see, the plan that Kei and Sho came up with were relatively simple. The pizza shop that Z ran was a big part of it, for, whenever a member of a gang called to order, Z would let his brother and the ferret know about it. Afterwards, he'd lace the pizza with a dose of a sleeping drug and have it sent to them. Kei and Sho would make there way to the place, wait for them to fall asleep, then rob them blind.

"Listen, Sho, I'd really love to argue with you, but, right now, we need to be a little quieter."

Sho almost laughed at this. "I never thought I'd hear **YOU** say that, Kei."

"Yeah, well, there's a first for everything." Kei glanced upwards, fixing his eyes on a window that was situated relatively high up on the wall. "Hold on, I'll check." He crouched down, bunching his lean muscles, then jumped, landing lightly on the sill.

"You never cease to amaze me, Kei." Sho muttered sarcastically as he watched Kei almost slip of the edge. Kei turned and glared at him.

"I heard that."

"My point exactly."

Kei growled, then turned and looked through the window. He tilted his head, confused by the lack of life, be it drugged life or whatever. Kei turned and looked down at Sho.

"There's no one there." He said as he leapt off, landing next to Sho.

"Hmm...I wonder where they went. Got any ideas Kei?"

"..."

"Kei?" Sho turned to the ferret, who was staring fixedly in front of them. The Akita blinked, then turned. Standing under the light of a street lamp was the fox and, again, he was staring at them. Sho frowned, then walked forward, gun drawn. He reached the fox, then pointed the gun at his head. "Alright, get talking. Who the hell are you?"

"As far as I'm concerned, that's none of your business." The fox said simple. Sho glared and got ready to cock his gun, when his breath was driven out of him as something thudded into his stomach, knocking him on his back. Star exploded in his field of vision as his head hit the ground. The Akita blinked groggily at a crowbar, which was coming straight at his head.

Suddenly, there was a pain in his ribs as Kei rushed over, kicking him out of the way. "OW! Dammit Kei!" Sho barked as he leapt up, shaking his head. He turned to Kei, only to find him staring again. "What are you-?!" Sho looked around suddenly, realizing that the fox had vanished.

"..."

"Kei, what happened? Where'd he go?"

"...would you believe me if I told you he flew away?"

"Coming from you...yep." Sho said, turning and walking to the building. "Still, we might as well get this over with." He stumbled, almost falling over as Kei sped past him.

"Hurry up, Sho!" The ferret yelled as he yanked open the door and ran inside.

"What happened to being stealthy?" Sho asked himself as he walked in after Kei. The ferret was virtually tearing through boxes and crates, hoping to find something of value. Sho rolled his eyes and leaned against the wall, letting Kei get some energy out.

Out of the corner of his eyes, the Akita caught movement. He blinked, then turned his head. A large dog was standing there, staring at him with a pair of red eyes. Numerous scars cut through its pelt, especially the face, and its ears were ravaged pretty badly.

"What the hell's a dog doing-? I seriously hope you're not a guard dog." Sho said, moving his hand to his gun. Instantly, the dog sat down, head at a tilt, and gave a low whine, tail wagging furiously.

"Who's your friend, Sho?" Kei asked as he walked over, empty-handed. Sho moved his hand away from his gun and shrugged.

"I don't know. She just walked over."

Kei walked over to the dog and crouched down. "...kinda battered, wouldn't ya say?" The dog snarled and snapped her fangs, almost biting his face. Kei pulled back quickly. "Whoa, sorry." The dog glared at him, then snorted. Kei turned to Sho.

"Seems pretty smart for a dog."

"Eh, I guess you're right. But did you find anything?"

"No." Kei said, shaking his head. "Nothing. It looks like someone already beat us to it."

Sho sighed angrily and turned, walking about of the door. Kei stood up and walked after him. "Come on, Sho. It could happen to anyone!"

"DOUBT IT!!!!"

The dog looked after them, then turned. "I'm following them."

The fox stood watching in a shadowed corner. "Are you su-?" He shut up as the dog, which was an Akita, glared at him. She stood and quickly ran after them. The fox rolled his eyes, then sat down. "Of course."

Kei perked his ears and turned, seeing the dog following them. "Hey Sho, she's following us." He said, turning to face forwards again.

"Yeah, mangy strays do that sometimes." Sho said, neither of them noticing the glare the Akita sent them. The glare vanished quickly as Kei turned and looked again.

"But what if she follows us all the way back?"

"How the hell should I know? It's your bar, you decide on what to do!"

Kei turned forward and sneered. "So you gave up ownership on your half then?"

"NO!" Sho shouted, suddenly realizing what he said.

"That's what it sounded like to me." Kei yelled as he ran ahead, darting past Sho in a mad dash to get to the bar. Sho growled and bolted after him, with the Akita following closely.

* * *

Kei arrived at the bar first. He looked around, then laughed. "I beat ya Sho!" Seconds later, Sho appeared, panting slightly.

"You cheated, bastard!"

"No I didn't!" Kei said with a frown. "You're just slo-whoa!" The ferret fell to the side as the Akita pushed angrily past him, entering the bar and closing the door with a slam.

"I swear he's PMSing." Kei stated as he stood up, brushing himself off. A whine made him look to the side. The red Akita was seated, staring up at him, with both ears perked. Having never been followed by a dog, Kei was completely at a lose at what to do.

"Uh..." He waved a hand. "Go away, doggie." She didn't move. Kei scratched his head.

"Hmm..." He looked around, seeing a stick, which for some reason or another, was leaning against the building. Kei grabbed it and waved it in front of her face. "See the stick, doggie? See it? b**SEE IT**/b?!??!?!" The Akita jerked her head back a bit, barely avoiding getting whacked on the snout by the flailing still.

"Go get the stick!" He yelled, throwing it with all his might. The stick flew powerfully, smashing through a window of a building with a crash. Seconds later, there was a loud scream and a light flicked on.

"Uh, on second thought!" He kicked the door open, grabbed the Akita by her scruff, and bolted inside, slamming the door. The Akita growled angrily, but didn't bite, though it clearly looked like she wanted to.

After locking the door, Kei wiped his forehead. "Whew, that was close." The Akita suddenly gave an angry bark. "Huh?" The ferret turned his head. He still had a firm hold on the dog's scruff, holding her off the ground.

"Oops." Kei said as he dropped her. She landed with a thud, then picked herself up, barring her fangs and snarling at him. Kei held both his hands up defensively. "Wait a second! I didn't know how to hold a dog! It's not my fault!"

Quickly, he darted around her, avoiding a bite, and went behind the bar. "How about something to drink?" He asked, looking around at the various alcoholic beverages on the shelf. He grabbed a bottle and jumped up on the bar. "Wine?"

The dog stared, slightly dumbfounded, as the ferret opened the bottle and poured some of the contents on the floor. The dog moved a paw to the side, avoiding the splattering wine, then stared down at it. Kei also stared, having finished pouring it. The dog blinked, then looked up a Kei with a frown.

"? What's wrong?" Kei asked, perking his ears and looking back down at the wine, which was mixing with dirt and various articles of matter on the floor. "...ew. I wouldn't drink that either...I know!" The ferret jumped off the bar and crouched down behind it. The Akita rolled her eyes and sighed.

After a few minutes, plus a couple of crashes, Kei reappeared, holding a bowl. "You wouldn't believe how long it took to find this!" Drawing in a deep breath, he blew on it, sending out a large dust cloud, causing the Akita to sneeze and paw at her nose.

With a leap, Kei jumped over the bar, causing the Akita to stumble back to avoid being landed on. The ferret set the bowl down and was ready to pour the wine in it, when Sho arrived.

"KEI!!"

Kei jumped, causing some wine to splatter into the red Akita's face. She backed up, growling and pawing at her face as Sho and Kei fought over the bottle. Kei had a hold of the bottom of it, while Sho had a hold of the top. In turn, each of them tugged on it, attempting to pry it from the other's grasp.

"Give it back, Sho!"

"No Kei!"

"You can't give dogs wine!"

"I was gonna put it in a bowl!"

"You can't give dogs wine, **PERIOD**!!!"

"Why?!"

"Because!"

"Because why?!"

"Because I-"

"ALRIGHT, ENOUGH!!!!" A new voice cut through as the red Akita snarled at them. "I'm sick and tired of all this goddamn fighting!!!"

Both Kei and Sho stared at the dog, each of them still holding the bottle.

"How are you talking?!" Spluttered Sho. The dog growled, then suddenly transformed into a Varg, dressed in a black shirt and jacket. She snarled angrily, drawing a sword and pointing it at them.

"This is how I'm talking! And, frankly, I've heard enough out of you two! Now where its it?!" She barked, pointing her sword straight at Kei.

"Where's what?!" The ferret asked, confused.

"Don't be a dumbass! Where's the Devil's Tear?!"

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~CLIFFHANGER...YET AGAIN!!!!!~*~*~*~*~*~*~

* * *

**Devil After Dark and all it's characters are copyrighted to me. If you want to use them, take it up with me or else.**


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